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Snapshots from Goose Island State Park
Our trip to Goose Island State Park in early October was lovely, though the mosquitoes and the heat were still ramped up onto “high”. But we made do and enjoyed what we could. The Goose Island Oak still stands tall, though quite weathered and who knows how many more decades (or centuries) it still has left in it. Wineflower, Boerhavia diffusa As is my usual these days, I am always on the prowl for plants and interesting fauna to add to my iNaturalist sightings. This interesting little plant I only took a few quick pictures of because I thought it was nothing of particular interest but if it is what…
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At last, the garden beds are done!
Well, it took a good six or so weeks of us putting our heads down on the weekend and just getting the work done, but the concrete beds are all poured! We finished the last one on Saturday afternoon and my back rejoices! The next steps will be to fill the remaining beds with soil, put some mulch down, and eventually get the perimeter beds done. Chris has figured out a way to make that work, I think, by creating smaller concrete sections and piecing them together. I’m just glad we can finally grow something out there once again! I’m really looking forward to a stellar tomato season! The beds…
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October Wanderings at Lake Creek Preserve
A few weeks ago we escaped the constant weekend work that has been pouring concrete raised beds and went for an early morning hike at Lake Creek Preserve. Chris and I had visited by ourselves in July while Forest was visiting grandparents and the mosquitoes were terrible then. I guess I didn’t end up writing about it here but you can read a post from Dec 2020 to see this park in a different season. Autumn has brought out the fungi once again and I got a kick out of this fungi upon fungi situation with the mold growing on the mushroom. There used to be a sign marking this…
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One More Step Forward
Yesterday, Forest and I got up well before dawn to drive over to Texas Children’s in the Woodlands to get his first Covid-19 vaccination! What a monumental feeling to know we are finally here! I know the 0-4 year old parents are also quite antsy and I hope it is approved for them soon, too. The day the FDA approved it I was able to find an appointment for the 10th at Texas Children’s in downtown Houston. I’d gotten the tip from a friend who’d already made appointments for her kids, which were for today. Then on Tuesday evening this week, after the CDC approved it, Chris was on the…
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October 2021 Rewind
October felt long, didn’t it? Maybe it was just me, but the month was hectic and slow at the same time. Some weeks it felt as if we were go-go-go and other weeks crawled. Halloween has come and gone and Forest was a Minecraft player—seen here without his sword and hat! This was a last minute change the week before from wanting to go as a dinosaur as he did two years ago, using the same parts of the costume. My orchids are work are starting to thrive once again. After dealing with sub-zero temperatures for multiple days back in February, I managed to only lose one! One or two…
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Close Encounters with Diamondback Terrapins
A few weekends ago we camped at Goose Island State Park. Despite a brief period of time where cooler weather prevailed, it had retreated and in came the heat and humidity once again. And the mosquitoes. It was quite possibly the warmest October camping I’ve ever done in Texas. Goose Island was lovely as always and despite the mosquitoes we had an enjoyable time. One of the bonuses was getting to see Texas Diamondback Terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin littoralis)! In the summer of 2014, while I was heavily pregnant with Forest, Chris did a field job in coastal Louisiana. There he got to see a lot of terrapins, though I think…
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Right On Time
I’ve enjoyed Brandi Carlile’s music over the last decade, mostly some of her hits, but have never fallen into die-hard fandom. However, I watched this most recent performance on SNL over the weekend and I think I am now a die-hard fan! And if you need a playlist for Fall, I’ve got one!
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Sunday Evening at 8:33pm
+Minecraft—on Forest’s mind continuously. +The Garden Beds—three installed so far! Back aching work and I’ll be glad when they are done. +Constantly thinking about native plants and propagating seeds to expand the native plant palate in the yard. +Feeling the tug to read fiction again after a very heavy year of non-fiction. +Wanting to write and having so many ideas that I don’t know where to start, so list writing on a blog post is how I’m going to start. +Re: writing—I want to write books. Have little time to get that done. +In the meantime I’ve been pouring my creative energy into art. My weekly nature journaling has been…
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September 2021 Rewind
We kicked off September with Forest’s birthday. He’s at such a fun age right now where his imagination is running wild and he’s still in a silly little kid phase. I love it! Earlier in the month I found two Passiflora incarnata fruit around the corner from the house. I sowed seeds of one of them and ate the other in some yogurt and ever since I ate the one I’ve been on the prowl for more. None yet! I *think* this is Dusty—but honestly, sometimes their profiles will confuse me. But both of them are cuddly cats these days! We had our first taste of fall and of course…
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First Fall Hike of the Season
Contrast it with this next one—> First family Hike North Wilderness Loop from February 2015. The weekend before Tropical Storm/Hurricane Nicholas came ashore, the three of us headed for Sam Houston National Forest to start off the fall hiking season. It had been several months since we’d done any significant hiking and the day was perfect. It was warmer than it is currently but the light had changed and you could just tell the seasons were changing. We opted for the North Wilderness Loop, a loop we’ve done before as I’ve linked above, but it has been quite a while since we hiked it. I enjoy revisiting hikes and loops…